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WAR FLYING 



WAR FLYING 



BY A PILOT 

THE LETTERS OF "THETA" TO HIS HOME PEOPLE 
WRITTEN IN TRAINING AND IN WAR 



And the sentinel stars set their watch in the sky.— Campbell. 



BOSTON 

HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY 

1917 



y 









By Transfer 
MAR 25 1S24 



THESE — 



PREFACE 

This little volume of " Theta's " letters to his 
home people is offered in the hope that it 
may prove useful, and not for glory or reward. 
The Royal Flying Corps in war-time works 
in secret. Many of our gallant lads would 
gladly become pilots if they knew how to set 
to work, and, approximately, what they 
would have to face. When " Theta " decided 
to try to enter the service he had nothing to 
go on save a determination to " get there " 
and a general idea of the difficulty of achiev- 
ing his purpose. His careless and unstudied 
notes, written at odd moments in the work 
of training and of war, do show how a public- 
schoolboy may become a flying officer and 
how he may fare thereafter. Names, dates, 
and places, about which the Censor might 
have concern, have been concealed, and ex- 
traneous matters have been omitted. The 
letters are a cheery and light-hearted record, 
and may stimulate others. From first to last 
they have not contained a grumble. 

ii 



12 PREFACE 

It should be understood, however, that the 
experiences of the writer must not be taken 
as typical of those of all pilots at the front. 
The R.F.C. has different squadrons for differ- 
ent duties, and different types of machines 
suited to the nature of those duties. In the 
faster type of machine it is possible to do 
better and more dangerous work, and, even in 
one's own squadron, the duties of a colleague 
may have been more onerous and more trying 
than those described. In a fighting squadron 
the pilot may have almost daily combats in 
the air ; in another, he may have very long 
and very trying reconnaissance work. " Com- 
pared with that of some squadrons," writes 
" Theta," " our work is pleasant." 

November 26, 1916. 



CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Ordered Overseas (after Kipling) . 17 

INTRODUCTORY 
The Development of an Idea . . 23 

BOOK I 
IN TRAINING 



I. From Theory to Practice 

EARLY IMPRESSIONS 

MY FIRST FLYING LESSON . 

ON GOING "SOLO" . 

TAKING A TICKET 

FIRST CROSS-COUNTRY FLIGHT 



33 
33 

34 
38 
4i 
44 



II. Some Episodes : and a " Crash " 47 

III From Passenger to Pilot . . 53 

13 



14 



CONTENTS 



BOOK II 
ON ACTIVE SERVICE 



R.F.C. Alphabet 



56 



I. The Opening Movements 


. 57 


SOMEWHERE . 


57 


MAP STUDY . 


59 


A FORCED LANDING . 


61 


ARCHIES . 


62 


AGED NINETEEN 


64 


A CONCERT 


. 65 


I. Increasing the Pace . 


. 67 


FRENCH AVIATOR'S BAG 


67 


THE ENEMY IN OUR MIDST 


68 


" HOT-AIR STUFF " . 


► 7i 


A BIG " STRAFE " 


72 


LOOPING THE LOOP . 


75 


NIGHT FLYING . 


80 


PHOTOS . 


81 


HIDE AND SEEK 


82 


" MISSING " . 


. 85 


PANCAKING IN A WHEAT FIELD 


87 


AN EXCITING LANDING 


■ 89 


DUAL CONTROL . 


. 90 



CONTENTS 


15 




PAGE 


. Storm after Calm 


. 94 


BACK TO DUTY . 


. 94 


A GOOD STORY . 


96 


A fokker's FLIGHT . 


. 97 


A TAIL PIECE . 


98 


NIGHT BOMBING 


99 


GESTICULATION IN MID-AIR 


102 


A FIREWORK DISPLAY 


104 


A MIXED GRILL 


106 


STALLING . 


no 


AN AIR FIGHT . 


116 



ORDERED OVERSEAS 

(After Kipling) 

Does he know the road to Flanders, does he 

know the criss-cross tracks 
With the row of sturdy hangars at the end ? 
Does he know that shady corner where, the 

job done, we relax 
To the music of the engines round the bend ? 
It is here that he is coming with his gun 

and battle 'plane 
To the little aerodrome at — well, you know ! 
To a wooden hut abutting on a quiet 

country lane, 
For he's ordered overseas and he must go. 



Has he seen those leagues of trenches, the 
traverses steep and stark, 

High over which the British pilots ride ? 

Does he know the fear of flying miles to east- 
ward of his mark 

When his only map has vanished over-side ? 
2 17 



18 ORDERED OVERSEAS 

It is there that he is going, and it takes a 

deal of doing, 
There are many things he really ought to 

know ; 
And there isn't time to swot 'em if a Fokker 

he's pursuing, 
For he's ordered overseas and he must go. 

Does he know that ruined town, that old 

of renown? 
Has he heard the crack of Archie bursting near ? 
Has he known that ghastly moment when 

your engine lets you down ? 
Has he ever had that feeling known as fear ? 
It's to Flanders he is going with a brand- 
new aeroplane 
To take the place of one that's dropped 

below, 
To fly and fight and photo mid the storms of 

wind and rain, 
For he's ordered overseas and he must go. 

Then the hangar door flies open and the engine 

starts its roar, 
And the pilot gives the signal with his hand ; 
As he rises over England he looks back upon the 

shore, 
For the Lord alone knows where he's going to 

land. 



ORDERED OVERSEAS 19 

Now the plane begins to gather speed, com- 
pleting lap on lap, 

Till, after diving down and skimming low, 

They're off to shattered Flanders, by the com- 
pass and the map — 

They were ordered overseas and had to go. 



INTRODUCTORY 



THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN IDEA 

I 

The first number of the well-thumbed file of 
Flighty carefully kept by " Theta " up to the 
present day, bears date July 30, 19 10, just 
two years after the first public flight in the 
world. At that time this particular public- 
schoolboy was thirteen years of age. His 
interest in aviation, however, dated from con- 
siderably before that period, and its first 
manifestation took the form of paper gliders. 
Beyond the fact that they could be manipu- 
lated with marvellous dexterity and that they 
could be extremely disturbing to the rest of 
the class in school, no more need be said. In 
December 19 10 " Theta ,; felt that he had a 
message on airships to convey to the world, 
and he communicated it through the medium 
of the school Journal. Thenceforward he 
wrote regularly on flying topics for the Journal, 
and for four years acted as its Aeronautical 

23 



24 MODEL AEROPLANES 

Editor. Throughout 191 1, with two school 
friends, he also assisted in producing Aviation, 
a cyclostyle sheet of small circulation proudly 
claimed as " the first monthly penny Aviation 
journal in the world ." Therein the various 
types of machines were discussed with all the 
delightful cocksureness of youth, and various 
serial stories based on flying adventures duly 
ran their course. For some years he pursued 
the construction of model aeroplanes with an 
assiduity that may well have been fatal to 
school work and games, and that was kept up 
until the German power-driven model drove 
the elastically-propelled machines into the 
realms of toydom. A motley crowd of en- 
thusiasts used to gather every Saturday and 
Sunday in one of the great open spaces of 
London for the practice of their craft — nearly 
all boys in their teens, occasionally one or two 
grown-ups with mechanical interests. When 
the War came the group broke up. Some of 
them took up real aircraft construction ; 
others became attached to the Air Service, 
naval and military, as mechanics. At least 
two became flying officers. 

In July 191 1 " Theta " obtained his first 
Pilot's Certificate, from an Aero Club which 
he had assisted in founding. The document 
is perhaps sufficiently interesting to reproduce : 



A JUVENILE " TICKE1 " 25 

No. 1 

X.Y.Z. AERO CLUB : PILOT'S CERTIFICATE 

I hereby Certify that " Theta " has passed the re- 
quired tests for the above-named Certificate. The tests 
have been witnessed by the undernamed : 

R. H. W. and J. H. C, 

who are Members of the X.Y.Z. Aero Club. 
The tests are as follows : — 

1. Flight of 100 yards. 

2. Circular flight of any distance provided the machine 

does not touch the ground and lands within fifteen 
yards of the starting-point. 

3. Or (alternative) flight of any distance when machine 

flies not less than six feet higher than the starting- 
point. 

4. Flight lasting at least eight seconds. 

The above tests have been approved by the members of 
the Club. 

{Signed) R. H. W., Secretary. 1 
J. H. C, President* 

The tests would have been very different a 
few months later, and really wonderful long- 
distance flights were afterwards accomplished. 

In order to be able to write with some 
authority, " Theta " kept abreast of all de- 
velopments in Aeronautics, reading with 
avidity all the literature on the subject and 
visiting the flying- grounds. The first aero- 

1 Now with the gunners in France. 

8 Interned in Germany since outbreak of war. 



26 VISITS TO FRANCE 

plane he saw in the air was when Paulhan gave 
a demonstration of flying at Sandown Park. 
Subsequently numerous pilgrimages to Brook- 
lands and Hendon were made. 

There followed visits to France in the 
vacations. On the second visit " Theta " and 
a companion, it was afterwards discovered, 
cycled round the rough and narrow stone 
parapet of a fort when a single slip would 
have meant precipitation into a moat on one 
side, or into the sea on the other. It was a 
test of nerves. The return from the third 
visit was memorable. " Theta " had left his 
portmanteau on a railway platform in Nor- 
mandy and his waterproof on the Cross-channel 
steamer ; but he arrived at Waterloo serenely 
content with the wreck of his model aeroplane 
wrapped up in an old French newspaper and 
a bathing- towel. His knowledge of French 
and his customary luck, however, served him, 
and the missing impedimenta duly followed 
him up in the course of a day or two. Of his 
French friends — three brothers — one was killed 
in the opening months of the War ; a second 
was wounded and taken prisoner by the 
Germans, after an adventure that would have 
won him the V.C. in this country ; and the 
third, as interpreter, was one of the links 
between the Allied forces at the Dardanelles, 
and is now engaged on similar work. 



AND GERMANY 27 

A few months before war broke out 
14 Theta " visited Germany and photographed 
the Zeppelin " Viktoria Luise " and its hangar 
at Frankfort. He was immensely struck by 
the ease with which the huge airship was 
manipulated, and with its value as a sea scout ; 
but as a fighting instrument he put his money 
on the heavier-than-air machines. So grew 
day by day, month by month, and year by 
year — without the least slackening — that in- 
terest in aviation which came to fruition in 
war time. 



II 

" Theta " was born in May 1897 > tne War 
broke out in August 19 14. On his eighteenth 
birthday " Theta " decided that it was time 
to " get a move on." His ambition from the 
first had been to enter the Royal Flying 
Corps. This was opposed chiefly because of 
his youth and seeming immaturity and the 
excessive danger attached to training. But 
fate, impelled by inclination, proved too 
strong. He had been a member of his O.T.C. 
for four years, and had attended camps at 
Aldershot and Salisbury Plain ; but he de- 
liberately set his face against " foot-slogging." 
He urged that though he was old enough to 
risk his own life he was not old enough to 



28 ACCEPTED FOR DUTY 

risk the lives of others — his seniors — by 
accepting an infantry commission. 

After many preliminaries an appointment 
was secured at the War Office with a High 
Official of Military Aeronautics. There 
" Theta " was subjected to a curiously in- 
teresting catechism which seemed to touch 
on nearly every possible branch of activity 
under the sun except aviation. Finally the 
High Official, probably seeing a way of 
ridding himself of a candidate who had accom- 
plished little or nothing of the various deeds 
of daring enumerated in the Shorter Cate- 
chism, suggested an immediate medical ex- 
amination on the premises. That ordeal 
safely passed, " Theta " returned to his 
catechist, who said wearily, " Well, we'll try 
you, but you know you have not many of the 
qualifications for a flying officer. " " Theta " 
returned to school to await his summons, 
which was promised within two months. 
The school term ended ; a motor-cycling 
holiday in Devon followed — and still no call. 
On the return to London a reminder was sent 
to the War Office. There immediately came 
a telegram ordering " Theta " to report for 
instruction at what may be called Aerodrome 
u A." 

Training began almost at once with a joy- 
ride often minutes' duration. But the weather 



TRAINING 29 

was for the most part what the aviators in 
their slang call " dud." An " abominable 
mist " hung over the aerodrome, and conse- 
quently, though the period of instruction was 
fairly prolonged, the opportunities for flights 
were few. There was much waiting and little 
flying, and the bored youth was driven to 
music and rhyming to fill up the interstices. 
But before the end of the year a good deal 
had been accomplished. At the close of his 
eleventh lesson " Theta " was told to hold 
himself in readiness for a " solo " per- 
formance. 

After four more flights came the successful 
tests for the " Ticket " which transforms the 
pupil into a certificated aviator. This pre- 
liminary triumph was celebrated the same 
evening by a joy-ride at nearly 2,000 feet, 
the highest altitude that " Theta " had reached 
on a solo performance. Nearly four years 
and a half had elapsed between the schoolboy 
" Ticket " and the real thing. 

Then came a transfer to another and more 
advanced type of machine. On this there 
were but three flights with an instructor, and 
then another " solo " performance. To- 
wards the close of the year " Theta " left 
Aerodrome " A " for Aerodrome " B," having 
in the meantime been gazetted as a pro- 
bationary second lieutenant, Special Reserve. 



30 " WINGS " 

The advanced course occupied about three 
months. It proved more exciting in many 
ways. In the elementary portion of training 
11 Theta " saw many " crashes," none of 
which, however, proved fatal. In the second, 
war conditions more nearly prevailed, and at 
times — when, for example, three colleagues 
lost their lives in flying, and a Canadian friend 
who shared his hut in training was reported 
11 missing, believed killed," within a few weeks 
of reaching the front — the stern realities of 
his new profession were driven home. 

But youth is ever cheerful and optimistic. 
In fulness of time there came a flight of a 
covey of seven " probationaries " in one 
taxicab to an examination centre for " wings," 
a successful ending, followed shortly afterwards 
by final leave, an early-morning gathering of 
newly made flying officers at Charing Cross 
Station, the leave-taking, and the departure 
to the front. 

Training was over ; the testing-time had 
come. Before his nineteenth birthday was 
reached (< Theta " had been across the German 
lines. 

His letters may now be allowed to " carry 



BOOK I 

IN TRAINING 

(October — April) 



31 



FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE 

Arrived here O.K. and reported. Spent the 
best part of the morning signing 

Impre7sions.P a P ers and books > and buzzing 
around. On the way across to 
the hangars discovered two R.F.C. men lying 
on the ground trying to look like a mole-hill, 
and fidgeting with a gadget resembling an 
intoxicated lawn-mower, the use of which I 
have not yet discovered. Am posted to " A " 
Flight (and wondering when I am going to 
get it, so to speak). You report at six o'clock 
if you are on the morning list ; at nine o'clock 
if you are not. When you report possibly 
you go for a joy-ride, weather and number of 
pupils permitting. You spend some time in 
the shops, followed by a lecture and then 
drill. At four o'clock you report again. If 
it's fine, and the officers don't feel too bored 
with life, they may take you for a flight, but 
it is generally some one else they take and not 
you. Then you smoke till 5.30 p.m., when you 
3 33 



34 FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE 

go home. However, I'm enjoying myself, 
and the pupils seem a decent lot. I don't 
think there will be anything doing for the 
next few days, as there is an abominable mist 
all over the place. The machines are the 
safest in the world. 



Have had a ten minutes' flight this evening. 
It was splendid, and felt perfectly safe. 
Machine seems quite simple to control. I 
had my hands on the dual set, and felt how 
the pilot did it. Don't expect I shall get up 
again for a long time. I was quite warm, 
and felt happy, calm, and confident. 



My first flying lesson was in the gathering 
My First dusk of a cold evening, but an extra 
Flying leathern waistcoat and an over- 
Lesson. coa t and muffler kept me warm. 
I mounted to my seat behind the pilot in the 
nacelle of the huge biplane, fastened my safety 
belt, donned my helmet, and sat tight. 

A duologue ensued between the pilot and 
the mechanic who was about to swing the 
propeller and to start the great 70-h.p. Renault 
engine. 

" Switch off," sang out the mechanic. 



IN THE AIR AT LAST 35 

" Switch off," echoed the pilot as he com- 
plied with the request. 

" Suck in," shouted the mechanic. 

The pilot moved a lever. " Suck in," he 
echoed. 

The mechanic put forth his strength, and 
turned the propeller round half a dozen times 
or so to draw petrol into the cylinders. 

" Contact," he shouted. 

11 Contact," came back the echo from the 
pilot as he switched on. 

A lusty heave of the propeller, and the 
engine was started. 

For a moment the machine was held back, 
while the pilot listened to the deep throbbing 
of the motor, and then, satisfied with its 
running, he waved his hand, and we began 
to " taxi " rapidly across the aerodrome to 
the starting-point. The starting-point varies 
almost every day, as the rule is to start facing 
the wind. Then we turned, the pilot opened 
the throttle wide, and a deep roar behind us 
betokened the instant response of the engine. 
With the propeller doing its 900 revolutions 
a minute we were soon travelling over the 
ground at 40 m.p.h. The motion got smoother, 
and on looking down I found to my surprise 
that we were already some thirty feet above 
the ground. A slight movement of the 
elevator, and we started to climb in earnest. 



36 FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE 

A couple of circuits and we were 700 feet 
up. 

The pilot looked round and signalled to 
me to put my hands on the controls. I did 
so, and then — apparently to test my nerves — 
he started doing some real sporting " stunts," 
dives, steep-banks, and so on — in fact, every- 
thing but looping the loop. However, it did 
not occur to me at the time to be nervous, 
I was enjoying it so much. And so at last the 
pilot, who kept casting furtive glances at me, 
was satisfied, and taking her up to 1,000 feet 
put her on an even keel, and took both his 
hands off the controls, putting them on the 
sides of the nacelle and leaving poor little me 
to manage the " 'bus." This I did all right, 
keeping her horizontal and jockeying her up 
with the ailerons when one of the wings 
dropped a little in an air pocket. On reach- 
ing the other side of the " 'drome " he retook 
control, turned her, and let me repeat my 
performance. 

Then, again taking control, the pilot, after 
a few more stunts, throttled down till his 
engine was just " ticking over," and did a 
vol plane from 1,000 feet into the almost 
invisible aerodrome. A gentle landing in the 
growing darkness and rising fog, a swift " taxi " 
along the ground to the open hangar, and my 
first lesson in aerial navigation was concluded. 



TEACHING METHODS 37 

The teaching methods may be considered 
rather abrupt, but they are those adopted 
now by all the flying schools. The pupil is 
taken up straight away on a dual-control 
machine to a height of about 1,000 feet, and 
then is allowed to lean forward and amuse 
himself with the second set of controls, any 
excessive mistake being corrected by the 
pilot. After a time he is allowed to turn 
unaided, to do complete circuits unaided, and 
finally to land the machine unaided. If he 
does this successfully he is sent " solo," and 
after a few " solos " is sent up for his " ticket " 
or Royal Aero Club Certificate. At the time 
of writing I am doing circuits unaided, but I 
hope, weather permitting, to have come down 
unaided by the time this appears in print. — 
Reprinted from the School Journal. 



Have not been up again, but hope to go up 
to-morrow. Am enjoying myself, and am 
quite fit. 



Had a nice flight yesterday with Captain 
— . If fine, hope to have another to- 



morrow. 



3* 



38 FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE 

Up this evening. We passed over a field 
and spotted a B.E. smashed. It had run into 
a hedge. No one hurt ; machine new. 



Three flights yesterday, and would have 
gone " solo " in the afternoon but a pupil 
smashed the solo machine. 



Nothing doing ! Nothing done ! 



At last I have gone "solo." On Sunday and 
Monday two of our machines were 

" n sSo/' g smashed b y P u P ils on their first 

solos and both machines had to 
be scrapped. In consequence, the pilots have 
been rather chary about letting us go up alone, 
and we too have been wondering whether we 
were fated to follow the example of the others. 

At length, however, Captain sent up 

X this evening, and he got on all right. So 
he turned to me suddenly and said, " Well, 
you'd better go and break your neck now." 
Thus cheered, I gave my hat as a parting gift 
to Y, shook hands mournfully all round, and 
amid lamentations and tears took my seat for 
the first time in the pilot's seat. 



IN THE PILOT'S SEAT 39 

" Con tact/ ' etc., and my engine was run- 
ning. I pointed her out into the aerodrome, 
and then turned her to the right ; but " taxi- 
ing " is almost as tricky as flying, and before 
I could stop it the machine had turned com- 
pletely round. However, I got it straight 
again, and taxied to the starting-place. 

A " biff " of my left hand on the throttle, 
and the engine was going all out. Faster and 
faster over the ground ; a touch of the con- 
trols, and we were off ! The next thing I 
recollect was passing over a machine on the 
ground at a height of 200 feet, and then I was 
at the other end of the aerodrome. This 
meant a turn ; so down went the nose, then 
rudder and bank, and round we came in fine 
style. A touch on the aileron control, and 
we were level again. Thus I went on for ten 

minutes, and as Captain had told me to 

do only one circuit and I had done consider- 
ably more, I decided to come down. 

It was growing dusk, so it was as well that 
I did. I took her outside the " 'drome," then 
pointed her in, put the nose down and pulled 
back the throttle. 

The roar of the engine ceased, and the 
ground loomed nearer. A very slight move- 
ment of the controls and we flattened out 
three feet above the ground and did a gentle 
landing. 



40 FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE 

A touch on the throttle, a roar, and I 
taxied back to the waiting mechanics. " Good 
landing," sang out one of them, and a moment 
later some half a dozen pupils were shaking 
me violently by all the hands they could find 
and all talking at once in loud voices. 
" Where's my hat ? " I asked, and a crumpled 
object was handed to me. Then up came 

Captain , very red in the face, and looking 

exceedingly happy. " Damn good, ' Theta ' I " 
and so it ended. Heaps of love to you both. 



Went " solo " last Wednesday and shall be 
surprised if I do so again before Christmas. 
It is cold and misty, and when not misty it is 
windy ; when it is neither it rains and so on, 
but mist from the marshes is the worst by far. 
So sometimes we sits and thinks and cusses 
and smokes ; and sometimes we just sits. 



Have been up again at last — the first time 
for a week. Four solo flights to-day. Went 
up 1,500 feet on the third and stayed up an 
hour on the fourth, between 900 feet and 
1,000 feet. It was lovely flying this evening, 
but bumpy and airpockety this morning. 



CERTIFICATED PILOT 41 

" Theta," C. Av. What ! At last I am a 
certificated pilot. As soon as I 
Tktart* arr ived tms morning they sent me 
up for my ticket, although (as I 
said) I had never done a right-hand turn 
alone ! I took my ticket in fine style, landing 
right on the mark each time, while X, who 
went up first for his, was helping to extricate 
his machine from a ditch. He finished his 
tests, however, all right afterwards. When 
I landed after finishing my eights, my in- 
structor said I could consider myself " some 
pilot " now. I went up to nearly 2,000 feet 
this evening for a joy-ride, and stayed up until 
I got bored and it got dark and began to rain. 
Well, I have got my ticket without " busting " 
a wire, so I hope I shall keep it up. Was 
overwhelmed with Congrats, from pupils, etc. 
I expect I shall be transferred to"B" flight, 
and get taken up as a passenger so as to learn 
to fly another type. 



Up this morning for a joy-ride with Sergeant 
and got into a fog bank and lost sight 



of land and sky. Got out of it all right in 
the end. Rather interesting. 



To-day was the first nice day for flying for 



42 FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE 

a week, so the officers and men arranged a 
football match ! All the same I did manage 
to get a flight ; so cheer-o. I had my hair 
cut yesterday, and a new glass put in my 
watch. To-day I find my glass cracked, and 
my hair grown almost as long as before, in 
the night. 



Whizzing through the azure blue 

In an aeroplane, say you, 
Must of sports the nicest be ; 

So it is, but then, you see, 
The only part that can give pain 

Is the return to earth again. 

Got on splendidly to-day. Went solo all 
right. This type is much nicer to handle than 
the other, but you land faster owing to higher 
speed. This I managed so well that Sergeant 

clapped his hands and said "Very 

good ! " 



The wind has been blowing, 

Ye gods ! How it blew ! 
Stopped bicycles going, 

Not one pilot flew. 
Up above — eighty-five ! 

Down below it blew — well — 
In this place dead 'n' alive 

It is absolute ! 



WIND, RAIN, AND FOG 43 

(Deleted by R.F.C. Censor as not being 
sufficiently expressive.) However, we at- 
tended a very boring lecture, and walked 
through slud and mush at drill time ; so we 
have not done so badly. 



Some poets say, 

As well they may, 

Congenial surroundings 

Conduce a lay 

With rhythm gay, 

And artful phrase compoundings 

With helpful muse 

To air their views 

On Nature's grand aboundings. 

E'en so as joy and sorrow 

Do in cases bring forth tears 

(A simile to borrow), 

In this case it now appears 

No sunshine sets the muse to work 

In humble little me ; 

Tis wind, and rain, and fogs that lurk 

Drive me to poesy. 



Cleaning wires with emery paper is grand 
exercise, albeit a trifle monotonous. How- 
ever, the pay (15s. 6d. a day) is good. And 

as we pass we hear the voice of R weeping 

for his pupils (which are not) and will not be 
comforted. 



44 FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE 

A most wonderful exhibition of flying by 
Hawker, Raynham, and Marix. 



Did you see your little son to-day emulating 
First Cross- tne antics of Nature's aerial orni- 
country thopters ? I left Aerodrome " B " 
Flight, about 10.15 a.m. and went over 
to S., then I branched off at right angles for 
W., but as I was about 4,000 feet up I could 
not pick it out from the other parks and 
commons, and so, finding myself running into 
a formidable set of clouds, I " about turned," 
and after taking my map from my pocket and 
studying it on my knee for a few minutes, I 
found out where I was and set out for Aero- 
drome " A." I found it all right, landed, had a 
chat with the pupils, borrowed a " bike " and 
went round to my old rooms, with chocolate 
for Betty. Teddie, the dog, was overjoyed to 
see me. ... I soon got going again and did a 
few circles over the hospital where Mrs. S. 
was nursing, climbed to 2,000 feet, and fol- 
lowed the railway to — home ! Here I did a 
circle, trying to cover the houses of as many of 
my old friends as I could, and then made off at 
right angles to the railway for Aerodrome " B." 
Before I left home I dropped four letters with 
streamers attached — two to you, one to A. C, 
and one to the Head. Only a few words 



A "RIPPING" MORNING 45 

inside, so it does not matter whether they are 
lost or opened by some one else. I have no 
idea where they fell. I could see Aerodrome 
" B " eight miles away directly I left you, and 
landed beautifully in time for lunch. I 
eovered the distance in about seven and a 
half minutes, having had a ripping morning. 
I hope you saw me ; and if you did, how much 
money did Dad win betting it was me ? 

The following extracts are from a letter from 
home which crossed the above in post : 

" We saw you. It was all very interesting, 
and has sent a thrill over the neighbourhood ! 
To ease your mind I may tell you that your 
letter was duly picked up and delivered within 
three hours of your visit. . . . The Mater saw 
an aeroplane passing over earlier in the morning 
and told me she was sure you had taken Betty 
her chocolate. Later it became borne in 
upon me that you were on your way back. I 
went to the door. Immediately there came 
the roar of a Gnome-engined biplane, and I 
yelled ( Here he is.' Up came the Gnome- 
engine biplane, gaily waving its propeller ; 
then it turned and circled round home. I 
gurgled ' It is Theta,' seized my handkerchief 
and waved it violently. Then there fluttered 
down from the aeroplane some little things 



46 FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE 

that glittered in the sun as they fell, and we 
knew it was your machine. . . . Then you 
appeared to go up over the school grounds 
and so home. I watched you till you were 
only a speck in the sky, and then turned 
away. I shall hope when I wake in the 
morning to have the scene described as it 
appeared to you from above. Meanwhile our 
hearty congratulations on your first cross- 
county flight." 



II 



SOME EPISODES : AND A " CRASH " 

{Extracts from " Theta's " Private Log- 
Book) 



Date. 




Remarks. 






November, 


Stalled 
drome. 


machine 
Captain 


all 
T 


round 


aero- 
» Fly- 



January. 



ing with your tail between your 
legs : looked d — d danger ous." 

Wind screen completely frosted 
over ; had only done few solos ; 
had to take machine to 1,000 feet, 
lean out, and clean screen. 

Same day got in hot air over 
factory chimneys. Hell ! 

Second solo on new type. Side- 
slipped through turning without 
flying speed. Ghastly sensation. 

Captain : " You would have 

been killed on any other machine 
but a ." 

47 



48 SOME EPISODES: AND A CRASH 
Date. Remarks. 

January. Another side-slip, but not so bad ; 
pulled her out of it. 

„ First forced landing. Connecting 

rod broke, and inlet valve went. 
Machine ought to have caught 
fire. Was two miles from the 
'drome. Just got in, machine 
vibrating horribly from 2,200 feet 
down. 
February. Worst day so far flown in. Chucked 
about like a leaf. No goggles, so 
could hardly see. Nearly strafed 
officers' mess. Landing all right, 
but frightful day. 

„ Engine lost 100 revs, per minute 

over trees. Had to " bird's- 
nest " ; unpleasant. Lucky en- 
gine did not cut out altogether. 

,, Rising over hangars when another 

aeroplane rose and headed me 
over tree, and kept too close. 
Had I not turned quickly at low 
altitude might have rammed me. 
Unpleasant. 

„ Cut out just in front of trees at 

50 feet. Steep bank ; quick right- 
hand turn ; landing close beside 
trees. O.K. 

,, As passenger ; pilot, Lieutenant 



ABOVE THE CLOUDS 



49 



Date. Remarks. 

February. . Engine missing badly over 

trees. Attempted to land in small 
field, but seeing would crash into 
trees at the other side at 40 m.p.h. 
pilot put nose up, and with 
missing engine cleared them by 
inches, the wheels actually touch- 
ing the top. Then more tree 
dodging and steep banks just 
above ground, landing in aero- 
drome. 

March. Climbed into clouds and steered 
by instruments out of sight of 
earth for practice. Spiralled 
down. 
„ Climbed 7,000 feet. Glorious view 

from above of clouds 4,000 feet 
below me. Most beautiful spec- 
tacle I have ever seen. Climbed 
till engine would go no higher, 
then stopped engine and did 
right- and left-hand spirals down, 
landing without starting engine 
again. 
,, Started on cross-country to A. 

Mist very thick ; lost my way, 
and found myself over London 
[No compass. — Ed.]. Turned and 
discovered Aerodrome " C " below 



50 SOME EPISODES: AND A CRASH 
Date. Remarks. 

March. me, so landed. Later, when mist 

cleared, restarted, but a following 
wind and mist made me over- 
shoot A., and landed in field near 
D. to find out whereabouts. En- 
gine refused to start, so pegged 
down machine for the night, and 
'phoned H.Q. 
,, Restarted next day when weather 

cleared up, but all landmarks 
covered by snow. Landed in 
field again, but decided to go on. 
So restarted, and again lost my 
way. Circled over town and rail- 
way, but could not decide what 
they were, and could not find 
a landing-ground. Eventually I 
found one and landed, just stop- 
ping in time at the other end. 
Kept engine ticking over, and 
was told was four miles from A. 
Restarted, clearing a large tree by 
one foot ; saw blizzard coming up; 
had no time to land, so headed 
into it and flew for twenty minutes 
at 200 feet altitude unable to 
see either instruments or ground. 
Wind and storm increased in 
violence ; was frequently blown 



A BLIZZARD ADVENTURE 51 

Date. Remarks. 

March. up on to one wing tip, the machine 

side-slipping once to within a few 
feet of the ground, and just re- 
covering in time for me to clear a 
house. Driving snow prevented 
machine from climbing and nearly 
drove it to earth. When a lull 
came and I saw a clear place 
beneath, I promptly circled 
round, clearing semi-invisible 
trees by a matter of inches (I was 
told). Finally landed well, and 
was running along the ground 
when a fence dividing the field in 
two loomed up a few yards ahead. 
Elevated, and the nose cleared it, 
but the tail skid did not, and 
caught the fence, bringing the 
machine down on its nose with 
a crash, and turning it over. My 
head went through the top plane, 
and I remained suspended upside 
down by my safety belt. 

„ Propeller smashes in mid-air. 

,, Tested new-rigged machine which 

had not been flown since it was 
smashed. Weather very bad for 
flying, much less testing a re- 
constructed machine. Did not 



52 SOME EPISODES: AND A CRASH 

Date. Remarks. 

March. seem to answer well to the con- 

trols and flew left wing down. 
Landed machine successfully and 
reported on it. 1 

1 In his private Log Book " Theta " apportions to the 
various " episodes " a figure showing the probable value 
of each narrow escape. From this it appears that he 
reckoned he ought to have lost his life fifteen and a half 
times ! 



Ill 



FROM PASSENGER TO PILOT 



s 



The following notes from " Theta's " Diary 
show the progress from novice (with accom- 
panying pilot) to certificated aviator (solo) : 



Height. 


Course. 


Remarks. 


350 ft. 


Circuits of Aero- 


Calm and even ; dusk ; rested 




drome 


hands on controls. 


1,000 ft. 


Round Aerodrome 


Smooth ; dusk ; felt controls. 


1,000 ft. 


Aerodrome and 


Had control a little time, and 




neighbourhood 


did left-hand turn. 


900 ft. 


Aerodrome 


Controlled along straights. 


800-1,000 ft. 


Aerodrome with 


Bumpy. Had control along 
straights for some time. Did 




occasional turns 




outside 


several left-hand turns, and one 
complete turn right round. 


600-700 ft. 


Aerodrome 


Did circuits, turns, and one 
landing. 


600 ft. 


Aerodrome 


Bumpy ; so did not get much 
control. 


500 ft. 


Aerodrome 


Controlled circuits, and two 
landings. 


600 ft. 


Aerodrome 


Entire control ; recovery from 
bank not quite quick enough. 
One landing. 


400 ft. 


Aerodrome 


Better ; two landings. 


300 ft. 


Aerodrome 


Two landings ; taxi and take 
off. Told to go solo in after- 
noon. 



4* 



53 



54 



FROM PASSENGER TO PILOT 



Height. 


Course. 


Remarks 1 


300 ft. 


Aerodrome 


Two good landings ; one bad. 
Too bumpy for solo. 


400 ft. 


Aerodrome 


Bumpy ; one landing. 


300 ft. 


Aerodrome 


One landing ; bumpy. 


300 ft. 


Aerodrome 


Entire control, and then sent 
solo. 


350 ft. 


Aerodrome 


First solo ; a few circuits and 
smooth landing. 


500 ft. 


Aerodrome 


All right. 


800 ft. 


Aerodrome 


Bumpy ; landed with engine 
ticking over too fast. 


1,500 ft. 


Aerodrome 


Climbed too steeply and nosed 
down too much on turns. Very 
bumpy. 


700-1,000 ft. 


Aerodrome 


Calm ; flew for half an hour 
solo ; landing fairly good. 
Climbed at better angle and 
turns slightly better. 


500 ft. 


Figure eights in 


Did first part for ticket suc- 




'drome 


cessfully, and landed right 
on T. 


500 ft. 


Eights in 'drome 


Did second part of ticket right 
again, landing within few yards 
of T. 


580 ft. 


One wide circuit 


Completed tests for R.A.C. 




with engine 


Certificate. 




switched off 




1,600 ft. 


Aerodrome 


Joy-ride ; landed with too much 
engine. 



BOOK II 
ON ACTIVE SERVICE 



55 



R.F.C. ALPHABET 

A stands for Archie, the Huns' greatest pride, 

B for B.E., our biplane they deride. 

C for the " Crash " when by " A " * " B " gets hit, 

D for the Dive before " C " ends the flit. 

E is for Engine, which sometimes goes dud, 

P is Cold Feet, as you wait for the thud. 

G is the Gun that you keep on the 'plane, 

H as per " trig " a is the height you attain. 

I am the Infant who flies a 2C, 3 

J the Joy-stick on most 'buses you see. 

K is the Kick that you get from a gun, 

L a forced Landing, too oft to be done. 

M for Mechanic ; in France most are " firsts," 4 

N for the Noise that A makes when it bursts. 

which is oil, stops the seizing of E, 

P Petrol used by the E of the B. 

Q is the Quiet one gets on a glide, 

R the Revolver you keep by your side. 

S is for Side-slip, some Shot, or a Stunt, 

T is the Thrill of a big Fokker hunt. 

U Under- carriage, first to go in a smash, 

V a V.P. 6 oft precedeth a crash. 

W the Wireless, for directing big guns, 

X Y Z I don't want, so I'll give to the Huns. 

1 Archie = Anti-aircraft. 

2 Trig = Trigonometry, 
a 2C = B.E.2C. 

* Firsts = 1 st Air Mechanics. 
6 V.P. = Vol Plane. 



56 



THE OPENING MOVEMENTS 

I am here at last. Where that is, however, I 
can't tell you. . . . We had a good 

wh°re"" J ournev > k ut white I was snoozing 
the carriage door — which must 
have been carelessly shut by one of our men — 
opened, and one of my field boots departed. 
I had taken them off so as to sleep better. I 
told a police corporal at the next station, and 
he is trying to get it. I had to put on puttees 
and boots, and pack the odd field boot. . . . 
You would hardly believe we were on Active 
Service here, although we are, of course, 
within hearing of the big guns. There is a 
stream near by where we can bathe. We have 
sleeping-huts fitted with electric light, nice 
beds, a good mess, and a passable aerodrome. 
The fellows all seem nice, too. I have met 
three of our squadron before. 



I have been up several times, but have not 

57 



58 THE OPENING MOVEMENTS 

had a job yet. I have been learning the 
district, and how to land and rise on cinder 
paths ten feet wide. The ground here is 
rather rough, and it speaks well for our under- 
carriages that they stand up to it so well. A 
good landing is a bounce of about twenty feet 
into the air, and a diminuendo of bounces, like 
a grasshopper — until you pull up. A fairly 
bad landing is a bounce of fifty feet and 
diminuendo. Every one here is cheerful, and 
thinks flying is a gentleman's game, and in- 
finitely better than the trenches ; when your 
work is over for the day, there is no more 
anxiety until your next turn comes round, for 
you can read and sleep out of range of the 
enemy's guns. What a pity the whole war 
could not be conducted like that, both sides 
out of range of each other's guns all the time I 

One of our more cheerful optimists feels sure 
the war will end in the next four or five years. 

My field boot has turned up, much to my 
surprise. It was forwarded on to me by our 
local Railway Transport Officer. 

We are having quite a good time in our 
squadron and are rejoicing in bad weather. 
Our messing bill is reasonable, and cigarettes 
and tobacco are very cheap ; so are matches. 



I have just been over to get some practice 



OVER THE TRENCHES 59 

with the Lewis gun. They are rather amusing 
toys, for you get rid of 100 shots in ten 
seconds, as you are probably aware. . . . 

I took up a mechanic who is a good gunner, 
to act as an escort to one of our men who 
was going photographing. The corporal was 
awfully amusing. He was always getting up 
and turning round, or kneeling on his seat 
looking at me and signalling to me. I thought 
several times he was going to get out and walk 
along the planes. The flight was quite un- 
eventful. Next time I write I hope to be 
able to tell you what the trenches are like ; 
at present, owing to low clouds and bad 
weather, I haven't been able to look at them. 



On Thursday I went up with an officer ob- 
server on a patrol, to look for Huns 

ap u y * and gun flashes, etc. We could 
not see anything above 3,000 feet ; so we came 
down to 2,500 feet and flew up and down the 
lines — well on this side, though — for a couple 
of hours. I thus got a splendid view of the 
trenches on both sides for miles, and it was 
awfully interesting to see the fields in some 
places behind our lines, originally green 
pasture land, now almost blotted out with 
shell holes and mine craters. 

There has been a craze here for gardening 



60 THE OPENING MOVEMENTS 

recently, and people are sowing seeds sent 
over from England, and building rockeries and 
what not. A counter-craze of dug-out digging 
was started by our CO. so as to provide a 
place of retreat if over-enthusiastic Huns come 
over some day to bomb us. The dug-out was 
almost finished when the rain came and con- 
verted it into a swimming-bath. The dug-out 
mania has now ceased. 

Thanks for your advice about studying 
maps. If I carried it out as you suggest in all 
my spare time, this is something like what my 
diary would have been for the past week : 

3.30 a.m. Wakened for early patrol work. 

Weather is dud, so study maps 

until : 
8.30 a.m. Breakfast. Raining, so return to 

room to study maps. 
12.30 p.m. Snatch ten minutes for lunch, and 

get back to maps. 
4.30 p.m. Have some tea, having violent 

argument meanwhile on con- 
toured and uncontoured maps. 

More study. 
8 p.m. Break off map study for dinner ; 

then go to bed and study maps 

till " lights out." 
Here ends another derned dull 

day. 



LOST IN THE CLOUDS 61 

Still I quite understand what prompted your 
advice. If one does get lost, however, one 
has only to fly west for a few minutes till one 
crosses the lines, and then inquire, as we never 
go far over the lines unless escorted. 

I have been up two mornings running at 
3.30 for work, but the weather has been 
11 dud." We do not always get early work, of 
course ; we take it in turns. 

I was up over the lines yesterday about 
4,000 feet and they put up a few Archies at 
me. They were rather close, so I zigzagged 
to a cooler spot. 



This morning we were up at half-past two 
o'clock. We got up 8,000 feet, 
Landing* anc * awa i tec * the signal to proceed 
from our leading machine ; but 
the clouds below us completely blotted out the 
ground, so we were signalled to descend. 
When I had dived through the clouds at 
5,000 feet, I discovered to my surprise what 
appeared to be another layer of clouds down 
below, and no sign of the ground at all. I 
came lower and lower with my eyes glued on 
the altimeter, and still no sign of the ground. 
Finally I went through the clouds until I was 
very low, and then suddenly I saw a row of 
trees in front of me, pulled her up, cleared 



62 THE OPENING MOVEMENTS 

them, and was lost in the fog or clouds again. 
I decided that that place was not good enough, 
and, not knowing where I was, I flew west by 
my compass for about a quarter of an hour 
and came down very low again. This time 
we had more success, and could occasionally 
see patches of ground fairly well from about 
twice the height of a small tree. We cruised 
around till we spotted a field, and, after a good 
examination of it, landed all right, and found 
on inquiry, to our great relief, that we were in 
France. The observer-officer and I shook 
hands when we landed. We returned later 
in the day when the weather cleared up. I 
am not the only one who had a forced landing, 
but we all came out all right, I believe. 

I was getting some well-earned sleep this 
afternoon when there came a knock at the 
door of my hut, and R. H. W. walked in. He 
is not far from me and so motor-cycled over. 
He stopped to tea, and I showed him round. 

We are very hard up for games, so I want 
you to send me a Ping-Pong set — wooden or 
cork bats, and a goodly supply of balls. 



(To B.C.) I have been putting off writing to 
you till I can tell you how I like 
German Archies. Well, I can tell 

you now ; that is, I can tell you how I don't 



DODGING "ARCHIE" 63 

like them if you promise not to show any one 
else this letter. Still, perhaps I'd better not; 
you are such a good little boy and have only 
just left school ; perhaps one day when you 
are grown up I'll tell you my opinion of Archie. 
Yesterday I was some miles across the line 
with my observer, as an escort to another 
machine, and was Archied like the — er — 
dickens, shells bursting all round and some 
directly under me. Why the machine wasn't 
riddled I don't know. I was nearly 10,000 feet 
up too. The Archies burst, leaving black 
puffs of smoke in the air, so that the gunners 
could see the result. Those puffs were all over 
the sky. Talk about dodge ! Banking both 
ways at once ! 'Orrible. What's more, I 
had to stay over them, dodging about until 
the other machine chose to come back or 
finished directing the shooting. Both W. and 
J. who came here with me got holes in their 
planes from Archie the day before yesterday, 
and W. had a scrap with a Fokker yesterday 
and got thirty holes through his plane about 
three feet from his seat. The Fokker ap- 
proached to within twenty-five feet. W. had 
a mechanic with him, and he fired a drum of 
ammunition at it, and the Fokker dived for 
the ground. So the pilot was either wounded 
or — well, they don't know how the machine 
landed, but are hoping to hear from the people 



64 THE OPENING MOVEMENTS 

in the trenches. The funny part is that the 
Fokker attacked as usual by diving from 
behind, and W.'s observer turned round and 
fired kneeling on the seat ; but W. never saw 
the Fokker once during the whole fight or 
after. W. had his main spar of one wing shot 
away, and several bracing wires, etc., so he 
had a lucky escape. 

My latest adventure is that my engine 
suddenly stopped dead when I was a mile 
over the German lines. My top tank petrol 
gauge was broken, and was registering twelve 
gallons when it was really empty. I dropped 
i,ooo feet before I could pump up the petrol 
from the lower tank to the top, and was being 
Archied, too ; but I could have got back to our 
side easily even if the engine had refused to 
start, though it would have been unpleasant 
to cross the lines at a low altitude. I have 
had the petrol gauge put right now. In- 
cidentally, not knowing how much petrol you 
have is rather awkward, as I landed with less 
than two gallons at the end of that flight ; 
that is ten minutes' petrol. 



It is rather strange having a birthday away 
from home, but the letter and 

Aged 19 

parcels I got to-day made it all 
seem like old times. ... I have done some night 



COMIC RELIEF 65 

flying here, and when I was up 2,000 feet I 
could see flares and lights over in Hunland. 
I stayed up some time, and finally by a 
colossal fluke did the best landing I have 
ever done at the Aerodrome. 



I went to a concert at Wing Headquarters the 
other evening ; it wasn't at all 
' bad. " The Foglifters " had really 
quite good voices, and some of the turns were 
excellent. One made up as a splendid girl. 
The programme may interest you : 

IN THE FIELD 

Lieut. presents, by kind permission of Lieut. - 

Colonel , his renowned Vaudeville entertainment, 

THE "FOG-LIFTERS." 

(They are thoroughly disinfected before 
each performance.) 

PROGRAMME 

Part I 

1. The Fog-lifters introduce themselves. 

2. C tries — but can't. 

3 # b sings a Warwickshire song in Yorkshire 

brogue. 

4. Six-foot picks his mark. 

5. B on his experiences in the Marines. 

6. C relates his visit to Hastings. 

5 



66 THE OPENING MOVEMENTS 

7. T on Acrobatic Eyes. 

8. The Second-in-Command ties himself in a knot. 

9. Six-foot warns the unwary. 

10. The Fog-lifters, feeling dry, retire at this point for 

a drink, and leave you to the tender mercies of 

H . " Watch your watch and chain yourself 

to your seat." 

Part II 

11. T thinks of leave. 

12. The " Boss " makes a bid for the biscuit. 

13. B and his Favourite Topic. 

14. Rather a Fagging Turn. 

15. B in Love. 

16. T endeavours to sing a Sentimental Song. 

17. Six-foot shows B how it's done. 

18. The Second-in-Command excels 'iself. 

19. B 's memories of the Spanish Armada. 

20. Six-foot and C have a Serious Relapse. 

The Beginning of the End. 
The King. 



II 

INCREASING THE PACE 

Only time for a few lines before the post 
French g° es - I was flying at a quarter to 
Aviator's three o'clock this morning. I was 
Bag. orderly pilot, and a Hun was 
reported in the neighbourhood. I went to 
bed after two hours' flying and was knocked 
up again, and spent another couple of hours 
in the air — all this before I had anything to 
eat or drink. Luckily I was not at all hungry 
or thirsty. The Hun I was chasing (or rather 
looking for) on my second patrol was brought 
down a few miles from our aerodrome by a 
French aviator. The pilot and observer were 
killed. Neither my observer nor I saw any- 
thing at all of the fight, as we were patrolling 
further down the line. You bet I was fed up 
when we landed. The smash was brought 
to our place and taken away by the French. 
The machine seemed essentially German — 
very solid and thick, weight no object. 

67 



68 INCREASING THE PACE 

The French aviators were very nice. I had 
a chat with them. The rumours at the aero- 
drome were various — one that I was brought 
down ; another that I had brought down a 
Hun ; and a third that a French aviator and 
I had had a scrap ! 



Here is a true story. There was some night 

The Enemy Ay m g a ^ one °f our aerodromes 
in our the other day, and a machine came 
Midst. over anc i fi rec | a coloured light 

asking " Can I come down ? " The people 
on the ground fired one in reply meaning 
" Yes," and a completely equipped German 
biplane landed and a guttural German voice 
was heard shouting for mechanics. He got 
them all right, but they were R.F.C. and not 
German mechanics. The coincidence of the 
signals was extraordinary. The machine — 
it was an Aviatik — was in perfect order, and 
has since been flown and tested by the R.F.C. 
It was wonderfully kind of them to plank their 
machine down in that aerodrome, and the 
surprise on both sides must have been ex- 
tremely comical to watch when the Hun 
discovered it was an English 'drome, and 
the mechanics discovered it was a Hun 
pilot. 



HIT BY ARCHIE 69 

I know that this is Sunday, as we have had 
a lot of work to do. I have just come down 
from my job. I went up at 12.30 and landed 
at 3 .40. Not a bad flight ? I was up and down 
the lines patrolling most of the time. Our 
escort lost us soon after leaving the 'drome, 
but it didn't matter. I got Archied two or 
three times, but nothing really annoying. 
They are very clever with those guns. For 
instance, when I was a mile and a half or 
perhaps less on our side of the lines they fired 
Archie on the French side of me, hoping I 
would turn away from it and so get within 
better range. They generally let you cross 
the lines in peace, so as to entice you over as 
far as possible, and then let you have it hot 
and strong all the way back. . . . 

I have just been to look at the machine. 
Apparently one of those Archies got nearer 
than I thought, for a piece of shrapnel has 
made a 6-inch hole in the tail plane. The 
shrapnel must have been spent, because it 
has only pierced the bottom surface of the 
tail, and has not penetrated the top. I was 
rather pleased when I found that, as it is 
something to say that your machine has been 
hit by Archie. 

The ping-pong set has arrived. 



5* 



70 INCREASING THE PACE 

I'll let you know right enough when I want 
any more garments. Our linen goes off to be 
washed at any old time, as there are plenty of 
laundries near here — an old woman, an old 
wooden bat, and a smooth worn stone by a 
dirty stream. The stuff comes back wonder- 
fully clean, however. 

Don't you worry about my food while night 
flying. I get that all right ; it was a very 
'ceptional case the other day. If we have an 
early stunt we always get hot cocoa and bread- 
and-butter. But you see, I was orderly pilot 
that day, and the Huns weren't polite enough 
to ring me up the night before and tell me 
what time they were coming ; and so I had 
to move rather more quickly when they did 
come. I can get chocolates and biscuits at 
the Canteen here. 

This is what you will call another (t restful" 
letter because I have had no flying yesterday 
or to-day. We rather like bad weather here 
when it is sufficiently bad. 

Dunno why the other squadron was " men- 
tioned " in despatches. They have about 
seven of our chaps there — perhaps that's why 
— or perhaps the General lost some money at 
bridge to the CO., or perhaps they drew lots 
for it. 



AN EXCITING MORNING 71 

I had some ping-pong to-day — quite a re- 
laxation after the job I did this 

stuff " lF mornm g* I went out with an 
observer on a howitzer shoot, an 
officer in this case. We went over to the lines, 
arriving there about 1 1 .1 5 a.m. and " rang up " 
the battery. All being well, we ploughed 
over the lines to have a look at the target in 
Hunland. The battery then fired, and the 
observer watched for the burst and wirelessed 
back the correction. Each shot fired meant a 
journey over the lines, and each time we went 
over the Huns got madder and madder, and 
loosed off " Archie " at us in bucketsful. 

Archie to right of us, 
Archie to left of us, etc. 

We were fairly plastered in Archie. Each 
time I crossed the lines I did so at a different 
altitude. The first five times I climbed higher 
each time to throw the range out, and the 
next five times I came down a bit each time. 
The last five times I was so fed up with their 
dud shooting that I went across at whatever 
altitude I happened to be at, and that pro- 
bably upset 'em more than ever ! At any 
rate they fired about 600 shells at us in the 
course of that " shoot," allowing roughly 
forty shells per crossing (at least) and fifteen 
crossings, and the only damage they did was 



72 INCREASING THE PACE 

to put a small hole through my top plane. 
My, they must have been disgusted ! l 

The " strafe " took place between 5,000 feet 
and 6,000 feet altitude. The Archies got so 
near sometimes that we went through the 
smoke from the shell. Of course it would 
never do to go on flying a straight course ; it 
is a case of dodge, twist, turn, and dive at odd 
and unexpected moments, and when it gets 
really too hot, run away and come back at a 
different altitude. , 



The Bosches started a big " strafe " yester- 
day, and so kept us all busy on 

" Strafe 



Ig „ counter battery work ; that is, 



spotting the flashes of the " hun- 
guns," and wirelessing down their positions 
to the artillery, who either fire at them or 
note their positions for a future occasion. 
With all the German guns going, the woods 
behind the lines were a blaze of flashes, and 
we sent down as many in the afternoon as the 
battery had got in the previous six weeks. 
The artillery were naturally rather bucked. 
It was a wonderful sight seeing all the shells 

1 In his private log book " Theta " sets out the cost 
of petrol expended by him on a non-eventful flight, and 
the cost to the Huns of the Archies fired at him, drawing 
out a balance of cash profit or loss to the R.F.C. 



SHELL BUMPS 73 

bursting along the miles of trenches, and the 
huge white spreading gas shells at intervals. 
One could hear the bang of our big guns when 
they fired salvos from under us, and at times 
we got bumps from the shells passing near us 
in the air. " Shell bumps " are fairly common, 
and I have had them before. I don't know 
how near the shells pass, but moving at that 
speed they would affect the air for a long way 
round. I felt them at 5,000 feet once. They 
were not being shot at us, but shells which 
pass through to Hunland, so : 





4,0 00R 

1 





We got a wireless report here of a naval 
battle and not a cheery one at that. We are 
all waiting to see what the papers will have 
to say about it to-morrow. . . . Later : The 
CO. has just been on the 'phone about the 
naval battle, and we are relieved to hear that 
it was not so bad as we had heard at first, or 
rather that the German losses were not so few 
as we were told. 

I must stop, as I have some letters to 



74 INCREASING THE PACE 

censor. " Hoping this finds you as it leaves 
me, in the pink." 



We have had two or three days of rest, as 
the weather has been too bad for flying. . . . 
The naval battle was not a defeat after all, 
and it seems a case of "as you were " in 
France ; so we just sit here and play ping- 
pong and wait for the Army to win the 
war. 



We have just had the papers with the news 
of the loss of Kitchener. We got the story 
by wireless a couple of days ago, but could not 
believe it until we saw it actually in print. 
It is a big blow, though probably morally 
more than in any other way. . . . 

Bad news has come through from the wing. 
Our ten days' leave will in future be cut down 
to seven days from time of leaving here ; that 
means five clear days in England. I only 
know this, that I shall be pleased to have leave 
in England, however short it is. It is a case 
of " so near and yet so far." An hour and a 
half or two hours' flying on a clear day would 
land me at home for tea — always providing 
I did not miss my way. But we don't have 
such a bad time here on the whole, and I am 



MAKE-BELIEVE 75 

perfectly frank with you in my letters. On 
carefully analysing my feelings, I believe I 
am actually enjoying the life, for we certainly 
do have the best time of any branch of the 
Army when our job is over. 



I had a job in the morning yesterda}^. A 
slight bombardment was on, and 

L °Loop. the the C0 - sent me U P t0 st °P [t ' lt 
was a beastly day — rain stings at 

seventy miles an hour — and it was cloudy and 

misty. We stayed a couple of hours, got a 

few Archies and came home. 

The afternoon cleared up, and my Flight 
Commander suggested I should go up and 
practise with a camera and some old plates. 
So up I went, and, with the camera tied on 
very securely in case I " accidentally " turned 
upside down, beetled off to a spot behind the 
lines where I played a delightful game of 
" make-believe." Fixing on an innocent little 
farmhouse as my objective, I dodged imaginary 
Archies on my way to it, and, regardless of the 
laws of aerial navigation, put my machine in 
such postures that the farmhouse was sighted 
by the camera. 

I tried a dozen or so shots at it, and then, as 
I had reached a height of 6,000 feet, I thought 
I would try to do my first loop. I shoved the 



76 INCREASING THE PACE 

nose down 70 — 80 — 90 — 100 miles per hour. 
The pitot tube did not register any higher ; 
the liquid went out at the top. Then, when 
at a speed of approximately a hundred and 
twenty miles an hour, I pulled the " joy- 
stick " back into my tummy, and up went 
the nose — up — up — and there I was, upside 
down, gazing at the sky. Gee, how slowly 
she seems to be going ! Ah ! ! she's over at 
last. The white blank overhead changes to a 
black mass of earth rising up at me, and the 
nose dive part is over too, and a final sweep 
brings me level. 

I glanced at the altimeter. I had lost 
400 feet. 

Cheer-o ! Now I'll write home and tell 
them. No, I must do another. If I did only 
one they would think I had funked it after 
the first shot. 

Down goes the nose, then up — up — and 
slower — slower. By Jove, she's going to 
stick at the top of the loop this time. Too 
slow ; centrifugal force is not great enough. 
My feet seem to lose their contact with the 
floor. 

I grip the " joy-stick " fiercely with both 
hands. Ah I She's over. Now the rush 
down, and then level once more. Now I'll 
get off to the aerodrome and show them how 
to do it. 



HOW IT WAS DONE 



77 



I did a couple more quite close to the aero- 
drome — beauties ; and then came down in a 
steep spiral. They were all at a height of 




6,000 feet, and I only lost 400 feet each time. 
Four good loops at the first time of attempting 
a loop isn't bad considering I had never even 
looped as a passenger. Strangely enough, I 



78 INCREASING THE PACE 

wasn't half so excited as I expected to be, 
and once accomplished, the feat seemed easy 
and not out of the ordinary. But to set your 
minds at rest I do not intend to go in for 
stunting. 

I am quite bucked, though, at having done 
it, and it was a curious sensation, to say the 
least. I have been heartily congratulated : 
they were " d — d good loops ! " 



Thanks ever so much for the pastries and 
the cake. They were ripping. But really, 
though, you mustn't trouble so much over me 
in the food line, for we have to pinch ourselves 
and tell each other " There is a war on " 
sometimes when we get some unusual deli- 
cacies. By the same post I got a pound of 
lovely nut chocolate from S. We had a 
tremendous scrap in the Mess over it when I 
discovered what it was, and it ended up with 
the box of chocolate on the floor, with me on 
top of it, and five people on top of me. When 
they discovered that the more people there 
were on top of me the farther off became the 
chocolate, they got up, and I handed it round 
in the usual civilised manner. It was great 
fun, though, and the chocolate being in a tin 
did not suffer. 

We had a visit from Ian Hay's friend to-day, 



FIFTEEN PASSENGERS 79 

if you recall a certain incident in the trenches. 
He recently got the Military Cross. 1 



One of the difficulties I have to contend 
with here is finding out the correct day and 
date. Days here are all one to us, and it has 
even sometimes to be put to the vote. 

Yesterday I spent four and a half hours in 
my machine ! Not all in the air, though. I 
took up fifteen different passengers, and gave 
them all a spiral. They were sent over to 
see what signalling on the ground looks like 
from a 'plane. I don't think any of them had 
been up before. At Hendon I should have 
made between £30 and £40 for that. 

As I was going out of the aerodrome I flew 
over a passing car and we waved merrily to 
each other. Then I chased the car, slowed 
my engine and dived at it, and a little later 
flew after it again. The driver must have 
been watching me too closely, for he went 
into the ditch. My passenger was awfully 
bucked about it. 

I suppose you know we have adopted the 
new time now. It only alters the hour of 
our meals, however ; our work goes on accord- 
ing to the light and the weather. 

Cricket is the great " stunt " here in the 
1 The Prince of Wales. 



80 INCREASING THE PACE 

afternoon and Rugby in the evenings. The 
mornings are spent in repairing the damage of 
overnight caused by the Rugger. All this, 
of course, provided the little incidentals of 
flying, and so on, do not interfere to excess. 
The batsman is out-numbered by fielders in 
the proportion of fifteen to one, and for his 
further annoyance he may not smite the ball 
more than quite a moderate distance or it 
counts as out. Still, the game provides much 
amusement, and as the batsman generally 
ignores the boundary rule, and smites at every 
ball on the principle of a short life and a gay 
one, it is also conducive to short innings. 



I had another twenty minutes' night flying a 
couple of nights ago, and did a 
Fiyfng g°°d landing. It was almost pitch 
dark, as there was a long row of 
clouds at 2,000 feet which hid the moon. We 
had flares out, and a searchlight lighting up 
the track ; but from the moment you start 
moving you go out into inky darkness, flying 
on, seeing nothing till the altimeter tells you 
that you are high enough to turn. Then 
round, and the twinkling lights of the Aero- 
drome beneath. Higher, and gradually, as 
you become accustomed to the dark, you pick 
out a road here and a clump of trees there, 



"ALL IS WELL" 81 

till finally the picture is complete. At length, 
you throttle down the engine and glide — 
keeping a watchful eye on the altimeter, aero- 
drome, and air speed indicator. When about 
400 feet up you open out your engine again, 
and fly in towards the aerodrome, stopping 
your engine just outside. Then you glide 
down and land alongside the flares. 

As I write, I hear a lively bugle band in 
the distance on the march. More troops 
going up to the trenches, I suppose. Our 
gramophone still plays on, our gardens and 
flower-beds are blooming, and all is well. 



To-day I went up to take photos, and went 
over the lines four times, carefully 
sighting the required trenches, and 
taking eighteen photos. I spent nearly two 
and a half hours in the air, and when I got 
back I found the string that worked the shutter 
had broken after my third photo, and the rest 
had not come out. It was disappointing, 
because my last three journeys over the lines 
need not have been made, and incidentally 
it would have saved getting a hole through 
one of my planes. 

J. saw a scrap in the air to-day in which 
one of our machines was brought down. He 
was too far off to help. The report came in 
6 



82 INCREASING THE PACE 

first that it was my 'bus which was down, 
but neither I nor my escort machine saw the 
fight, which must have been some distance off. 



All goes well, and I have finished my job for 
to-day (a three hours' patrol) with- 
HI g e e e J nd out seeing a Hun or getting an 
Archie. Two of us went up and 
F had streamers on his wings ; he was going 
to direct the flight, and I was to follow him. 
It was very cloudy, and F being in a skittish 
mood played hide-and-seek round them. This 
was good fun for the first hour, but after that 
it became boring. Once, when I was follow- 
ing him a short distance behind, he ran slap 
into the middle of a huge cloud. I said to 
myself, " If you think I am going to follow 
you there you're jolly well mistaken " ; so I 
waited outside the cloud, and was gratified 
to see him come out at the bottom in a vertical 
bank, about 500 feet directly below me. It 
turned out that he had been pumping up 
the pressure in his petrol tank, roaring with 
laughter as his passenger gave a little jump 
at every pumpful, for the passenger sits on 
one of the large petrol tanks, which swells or 
" unkinks " itself as you pump, and to his 
disgust he had run slap into the cloud without 
seeing it. It was a wonderful sight among 



A MEMORABLE^PICTURE 83 

the clouds, and to see the other aeroplane 
dodging in and out of grottos, canyons, and 
tunnels, poking its nose here and there, some- 
times worrying a zigzag course through a 
maze of cloudlets, and sometimes turning 
back from an impenetrable part with a vertical 
bank, outlining the machine sharply against 
the cloud. Finally we came down to a height 
of 5,000 feet, and there, just by the lines, we 
had a sham battle for the amusement of the 
Tommies in the trenches. 



11 I have nothink to write about this time. 
I got a letter from Bert the other day, he's 
out in France, and old George's group is called 
up too. I wonder when those Saterday nites 
with them will cum back, they were times. 
Then that supper with me and him at Eliza's 
after — my 1 Everyone thinks as how the war 
will be over with luck in a few years' time. 
'As Pa got that job or is he still at the ' Green 
Man ' ? Well hoping this finds you as it leaves 
me at present, in the pink. I wish you'd send 
our cook the resepe for them cooked chips 
you used ter do on Saterday nites. Give my 
love to Rose." 

No, I'm still sane — merely a temporary 
lapse owing to an overdose of censoring. The 
squadron yesterday, noticing that I was 



84 INCREASING THE PACE 

orderly officer, decided to give me a run for 
my money, and wrote millions of letters. 

My Flight Commander — one of the finest 
fellows I have ever met — is busy cooking 
tobacco with E. in a tin by means of a spirit 
lamp I They are trying to determine its 
" flash point," and I have sent word round to 
the M.O. to stand by with stretchers. 

I was up with K. yesterday, strafing some 
trenches. We started at 3,000 feet and the 
clouds descended lower and lower till we 
ended up at a height of 1,200 feet over a 
well-known town, where it became too wet 
and too hot at the same time for our job. 
To-day the clouds are crawling about just 
over the ground, so there is nothing doing. 

Our food here is English right enough. We 
get French bread as well, and it is generally 
preferred to ration bread. The gardens here 
have flowers — planted out mostly — pansies, 
nasturtiums, etc. I suggested that asparagus 
would be rather a good thing to plant, but the 
idea didn't seem to catch on I 

There is no reason whatever to be worried 
about not receiving letters. If there is ever 
a move either way it would not affect the 
R.F.C. to any great extent. It couldn't 
improve German Archie shooting or anything 
of that sort. No fighting on the ground can 
reach us, and in a big bombardment it only 



BAD NEWS 83 

means that we are kept fairly busy directing 
the fire of our batteries, etc. 



Sorry I shan't be able to write you to-day 

« m »» exce P t tn * s rou gh note written in 
my biplane. I have finished my 
job, and am writing in the hope of catching 
the post. There is bad news to-day. My 
pal B., who was on a bombing stunt this 
morning, has not returned, so I am afraid he 
may have landed in Hunland. I am just 
doing a long glide down to the aerodrome ; 
my passenger has asked me not to spiral down 
as he has got a bad head. I enclose his note. 
His writing is better than mine, as he has 
written on a soft pad. (Enclosure : — " Got 
a rotten head, so go steady, will you ? ") 



I've got a top-hole souvenir now. It is a 
machine-gun bullet which my rigger found 
in my fuselage — that is to say, the aeroplane 
fuselage. It is bent " some/' as it smote 
something rather hard — a bomb. 

I went up to take some special photos for 
the CO. to-day, but the weather was very 
bad, and the sky as smothered in clouds as I 
was in Archie, and that is saying a good deal. 
It took me three trips over the line to get five 
6* 



86 INCREASING THE PACE 

photos. Four came out, including on them 
corners of clouds I was dodging. The Huns 
got our range to a nicety, but there was not 
a scratch on the machine. One Archie burst 
just in front of us, and I looked up to see the 
corporal I had as passenger disappear in the 
smoke as we actually went through it. It was 
like going through a tiny cloud. I have heard 
and seen plenty of Archie before, but never 
before smelt it. The CO. was rather pleased, 
though only one photo was really of any use. 

The engine in my machine has put up a 
record for the squadron. It did over a hundred 
and ten hours' running without being touched 
or even having the sparking plugs changed. 
It was still going strong when we changed it 
and put a new one in. I have tested the new 
one and flown with it, and it is very good. 

We are kept well up-to-date with the London 
theatre news by the fellows who come back 
from leave. They also bring the records of 
them back for the gramophone, and now the 
camp resounds with music from " The Bing 
Boys are Here " and " Mr. Manhattan." 

To people who think this branch of the 
Service the most dangerous, you can say I'd 
sooner be here than in the trenches these days, 
and I think the opinion of the whole corps is 
the same. 



A LUCKY ENDING 87 

I ran out of petrol a quarter of a mile from 
the aerodrome, and had to land in a 

Pancaking fiel( j f w heat about five feet high. 
In a Wheat 
Field. * na< ^ Deen U P three hours and twenty- 
minutes non-stop when my petrol 
ran out, and the gauge still showed three 
gallons in the tank, though it was bone dry. 
I was 700 feet up and had to make up my mind 
where I was going to land in about four 
seconds. I brought her down, and pancaked 
her beautifully into the field about three yards 
from a road. It is jolly hard to land in wheat 
without turning over, but I did it without 
hurting the machine at all ; in fact J. flew it 
that evening on a night stunt. We wheeled 
it from the field along the road back to the 
aerodrome inside half an hour. My passenger 
said he enjoyed the flight more than any other 
he had had ! 

At the present moment there is some 
storm on. J. is playing the violin not two 
yards from me, and I cannot hear a single 
note except during lulls. Perhaps -it is just 
as well. 

One of our squadron was out on a stunt 
the other day. Next day the 'phone was 
continually on the go, and there was so 
much " hot air " in the office that it was 
dangerous to fly over on account of the 
bumps. 



88 INCREASING THE PACE 

Several of us have got special leave to go to 
a flicker show some way off, and a tender is 
coming in a few minutes. I am very fit, and 
we are all a very happy party. I am sitting 
on my bed, in my little hut about 8 feet by 
6 feet. It is really quite snug. Washstand, 
etc., and shelves and books and boots and 
clothes. Diabolo (home made) is the latest 
craze here ! Here comes the tender, so I 
must catch the post first. 



I was up on photos to-day. I hope and 
expect these are the last for a while. I had 
quite a job getting them owing to clouds. I 
flew about behind the German lines for over 
an hour before I could get a single photo, 
owing to there being no holes in the clouds. 
I got practically no Archie, and got the 
photos. 

I went to the flicker show the other day and 
it was quite good. A splendid divisional band, 
a Charlie Chaplin film, and tea, and patisserie ! 
Ah I 

I think Gillespie's book {Letters from Flan- 
ders) most interesting. I have only dipped 
into it here and there at present, but am going 
to read it through. Send some more as soon 
as you like. 



MIRACULOUS ESCAPE 89 

Blessed if I know what to write about. I 
did the three-hour patrol yesterday, 

LandlM^ ^ ut xt was ver ^ C0 ^ anC * c l 0U( ty anc * 
no Huns ventured out. 

A visitor landed at our 'drome from night 
bombing and a bomb blew his machine up 
on landing. He calmly got out of the scrap- 
heap and walked away. It was a miraculous 
escape, and most of our people who were 
asleep thought it was a Hun bombing us. 
The engine was still running on the ground, 
and the CO. stopped it by using a fire ex- 
tinguisher in the air intake — a jolly clever 
and plucky thing to do, as there were gallons 
of petrol all around, and, for all he knew, 
more bombs. 

There is a darling puppy here belonging to 
one of the men, and I go round and have a 
chat with it every morning when I inspect my 
transport. It is a jolly little thing, and quite 
looks forward to my visits. 



At the Base was a Censor, 

He chopped up my letter ; 

Thus he was a base Censor, 

Or why didn't he let her 

Go by ? Yet he'd some sense or 

News even better 

You'd^get in my letter. 



go INCREASING THE PACE 

I am at present flying a machine fitted with 

dual control. A couple of days ago 

„ Du *\ I went up to test it and E. came 
Control. t-tt i ii 

with me. We trotted round the 

country very low and stunted gently over 
neighbouring villages. You can easily tell 
when people are watching you, as in looking 
up the black blob of the hat changes to the 
white blob of the face. We went up again 
yesterday, and when I had taken the machine 
to 2,000 feet or so, I signalled E., and he 
fitted in his control lever and took charge. I 
then had a pleasant little snooze of twenty 
minutes or so, waking up now and then to give 
my lever a pat in the required direction when 
he did not get the machine level quickly 
enough after turning, or something like that. 
He did jolly well, turning the machine splen- 
didly sometimes. Then, when it was just 
about a quarter of an hour before dinner time 
he took out his lever, and I brought the 
machine down in the most gorgeous spiral I 
have ever done. Absolutely vertical bank on. 
M. was very amusing afterwards. " Quite a 
good spiral that," he said patronisingly to E., 
" for a first attempt." 

I was up again this morning for two and a 
half hours with E. The weather was hopeless ; 
our altitude was often under 2,000 feet by the 
lines. To relieve the monotony E. flew me 



AIR COMMUNICATION 91 

for about half an hour while I observed — the 
clouds and mist ! Finally, we got up a bit 
higher, and just before it was time to come 
home did a beautiful spiral quite close to the 
lines for the benefit of a few thousand Tommies 
and Huns in the trenches — just to show there 
was no ill-feeling, you know. 

I had just got my letters to-day when I was 
sent up, so I had to take them with me, and 
read them in the air on the way to the lines. 



I took up some chocolate the other day 
when I was on patrol, and gave some to the 
observer in the air, and we munched away for 
some time. He was a sergeant, one of the 
ancient observers, and he did not know that 
when I waggled the joy-stick — thus shaking 
the 'bus from side to side — I wanted him to 
turn round. I waggled away for about five 
minutes, and he sat there quite contentedly, 
thinking to himself (as he afterwards told me) 
that it was rather a bumpy day. Then I 
started switch-backing and he endured that, 
though on what theory I don't know. Finally 
I nearly had to loop him to persuade him to 
turn round, and when he did so he had a 
grin on his face and a sort of " Think-you- 
can-frighten-me-with-your-stunts-you-g i d d y- 
kipper " look as well. 



93 INCREASING THE PACE 

The newspaper stories of the firing in France 
being heard in Ireland, the north of Scotland, 
and Timbuctoo amuse me greatly. Those 
people must have " some " ears. 



I was most frightfully sorry that you hadn't 
received up to Sunday my letter about the 
postponement of my leave. It must have 
been a rotten disappointment, and I raged 
round the camp until I finally simmered down 
again. Never mind, it won't be long. . . . 
Six people have just invaded my 8 feet by 
6 feet hut. That is one of the ways superfine 
Virginias depart this life quickly. Rescued 
the inkbottle from an untimely death as a 
billiard ball, the cue a rolled-up map ; violent 
cussin', almost worthy of Mother Guttersnipe 
caused E. to vamoose and the others buzzed 
off. 

My dear old 'bus (or aeroplane as the 
authorities insist on its being called) * has gone 
under at last. One new pilot too many was 
called upon to fly it, and I may be bringing 
home a new walking-stick 1 I have not been 
flying it for a week now, as I have a nice new 
— er — machine to fly. But E. and I did all our 

1 Reference to a humorously satirical caution against 
the use of the terms " 'bus " or " plane " instead of 
"aeroplane'* or "machine." 



THE TENSION RELAXED 93 

11 hot-air stuff " on the other 'bus, and I 
looped it. 

• • • • 

The splendid news has come through that 
my pal B. is " safe and well though a 
prisoner." W., who is on leave, wired us. 

I shan't write to-morrow, as if all goes well 
it will be a race between this card and myself 
to get home first. The very best of love to 
you. 



Ill 

STORM AFTER CALM 

Back to work and my old friend Archie 

quickly. I was on bombing yester- 
Backto ^ a y^ not ver y £ ar over t j ie j mes 

though, and there were about 

of us. It was a wonderfully pretty sight to 
see the bombs going down in a string, 
dwindling, and finally disappearing below. 
Bags of Archie were flying around, but my 
" machine " was not hit at all. I was first 
up to-day and we had a non-stop flight of 
nearly three hours, ranging some batteries. 
The weather was pretty dud, but W. and I 
managed all right. S. is missing, as 
perhaps you have heard. He was on a long 
bombing stunt. He is reported unhurt and 
prisoner of war. 

• • • • 

I shot a bullet into the air, 

It fell to earth I know not where. 

When we were up to-day P. emptied a 

04 



AMUSEMENTS 95 

drum of ammunition from the gun over the 
lines — not firing at anything in particular, 
but just to test the gun. The empty cart- 
ridges as they were ejected landed with clock- 
work regularity on the top of my head. I 
said to myself, " This is some hail." 

Last evening E. and I went in a tender to 
the battery we had been working with in the 
morning and saw the wonderful ruins of a 
town near there. We were really quite close 
to the lines, but luckily there was no shelling, 
and we got back O.K. 

We have a game here now which is some- 
thing like tennis. Instead of racquets and 
balls, we use a rope quoit, which must be 
caught and returned as per tennis, but must 
not be held in the hand or thrown over-arm. 
I had a game of solo yesterday with three 
others, and I have discovered two people who 
are frightfully keen on " Scramble Patience." 
Gee whiz 1 One of them knows practically all 
Gilbert and Sullivan by heart as well. Isn't 
it extraordinary how " Scramble Patience " 
and Gilbert and Sullivan always seem to go 
together ? We went for a walk last evening, 
and sang the Nightmare song through, and 
several from " Patience " and the " Yeomen," 
etc. We are getting a tennis court made 
after all ; it is progressing quite well. 



96 STORM AFTER CALM 

Here is a story as it was told to me. One of 
the best pilots at the front one day 

^to°° d crasne d on the top of some trees. 
He got out, and was standing by 
the remains of his machine when a Staff 
Officer came up and remarked, " I suppose 
you've had a smash ! " " Oh n-no," stuttered 
the pilot, who was, to put it mildly, somewhat 
savage, " I always 1-land 1-like this." The 
Staff Officer, annoyed in his turn, said, " Do 
you know whom you are speaking to ? What 
is your name ? " To which : " Don't try to 
c-come the comic p-policeman over me. 
Y- You '11 f-find my n-number on my t-tail 
p-plane." 

I was called at four this morning, and leapt 
heroically into the air at five. It was con- 
foundedly cold, but I had a thick shirt and 
vest, a leather waistcoat, double-breasted 
tunic, the fleece lining from my waterproof 
and a leather overcoat, so I just managed to 
keep warm. 



Yesterday I was in the middle of a game of 
tennis when, with one or two others, I was 
ordered to fly over to a neighbouring aero- 
drome to be ready for a special job in the 
morning. I landed there all right and re- 
ported, and went into the mess-room slap 



OLD SCHOOLFELLOWS 97 

into the arms of an old schoolfellow. I was 
chatting with him when the CO. sent for me 
to explain the nature of the work before us. 
I went into his office, and the other pilots 
detailed for the work came in, and to my 
utter astonishment I recognised another old 
schoolfellow. I had dinner with him and 
stayed the night there. This morning the 
weather was too dud for our work and it was 
washed out, and we returned to our aero- 
dromes. I brought back my bed, valise, 
pyjamas, etc., with me in the passenger seat of 
the aeroplane. I had to fly back without my 
goggles, as I had lost them at the other aero- 
drome. 



One of our pilots had my machine up to-day 

and met a Fokker. His (or rather 

A F? k ht r ' S m y) ma chine was damaged, but he 

spun round and let fly at the Fokker. 

Then his gun jammed, but to his surprise the 

Hun went off home " hell for leather. " The 

R.F.C. have absolutely got the Huns " stiff " 

in the air, partly owing to our " hot stuff " 

new machines, and partly to the pilots. But 

a Fokker running away from the machine L. 

was flying must have been a comical sight. 

My machines always seem to be unlucky when 

in the hands of other pilots, 

7 



9 8 STORM AFTER CALM 

To-day I have done very little else but 
sleep, and the weather has done very little 
else but rain. I tried to get my hair cut this 
morning at a village not far away, but was 
informed that it was after twelve o'clock. 
" Surely not," I said, and the barber said 
11 Si," and unblushingly produced a watch 
showing about ten minutes to twelve, and 
motioned me away. However, I got some 
magazines, and chocolate, and some new 
shaving soap and razor blades. 



Just now I bid fair to outdo H.'s record of 

unpleasant stunts, as I nearly had 

^. Tail a third within twenty-four hours. 
Piece. . 

The first one was just to whet my 

appetite, so to speak, but although I only 

went a few miles over the lines I was Archied 

the whole blessed time. The Huns must have 

spent fortunes on Archie in the last week. 

I hit something with one of my bombs that 

made a colossal burst — probably some Hun 

ammunition. Yesterday they started on me 

just before I got to the lines, and, I think, 

went on until I was a good ten miles the 

other side. Then the Archies started from 

the place I was going to bomb, and clattered 

away for ages, but they were not nearly so 

good as those near the lines, as they haven't 



" REMARKABLE ! " 99 

got so much practice. There were some 
wonderfully near shots, and the machine was 
badly shaken by one which made a most 
appalling crash just behind the tail. I 
was horribly scared, of course. I looked 
round, saw the tail still there, said " Re- 
markable ! " and went on. The Hun aero- 
drome was a very nice-looking place. It had 
two landing T's out — great white strips of 
sheet, and there was a machine on the ground. 
I dropped several bombs there, one landing 
on the road beside the 'drome and one by the 
landing T. I don't know if I hit any of the 
sheds or not, as it was rather cloudy, and I 
could not see the effect of all my bombs. 
When I had finished I came back with the 
wind, nose down, at some pace, and hardly 
got an Archie at all. I was jolly pleased when 
it was over, and pleased too (in a way) that 
I had been, as it really was interesting to be 
so many miles behind the lines and see their 
aerodromes, etc. 



Well, I went night bombing yesterday — 

rather an Irish way of putting it, 

Bombing though I I went up after dinner, 

and as it was a bit misty I signalled 

down " bad mist." They signalled to me to 

come down, but I wasn't having any, and 



ioo STORM AFTER CALM 

turned my blind eye to 'em and beetled off. 
You see, from the ground it didn't look misty, 
and so, as I didn't want any doubts on the 
subject, I sloped off towards the lines. I soon 
lost sight of the flares and then became abso- 
lutely and completely lost. Everything was 
inky black and I could only see an occasional 
thing directly below me. My mapboard was 
in the way of my compass, so I pulled the 
map off, chucked the board over the side, and 
then flew due east for about a quarter of an 
hour, when I saw some lights fired. I crossed 
the lines about 4,000 feet up and tried to find 
my objective, but it was no go. I went about 
four miles over, and came down to 2,000 feet 
with my engine throttled down, but could not 
even recognise what part I was over, owing 
to the mist. Then, to my surprise, the Huns 
loosed off some Archie nowhere near me, so 
I expect they couldn't see me ; but it looked 
ripping. They got a searchlight going and 
flashed it all round, passing always over the 
top of me. Then some more flares went up 
from the lines, and I could see the ground 
there beautifully, as clear as day, and some 
deep craters, but it did not show me sufficient 
to enable me to recognise what part of the 
lines I was over. Deciding it was hopeless, 
I set out for home, flying due west by my 
compass. It seemed ages before I picked up 



FLYING IN THE DARK 101 

the aerodrome lights again, and I was afraid 
I might have drifted away sideways, but I 
spotted them all right, and just as I was 
nearing them, passed another of our machines 
by about 200 yards in the darkness. He was 
a wee bit lower than I was, and as he passed I 
could see his instrument lights in his little 
cabin. I then switched on some little lights 
I had on the wing tips, and flashed my 
pocket lamp — you know, the one I had in 
Germany and at Penlee — and then gave an 
exhibition of spiralling and banking in the 
dark. They said it looked topping from the 
ground. Then I signalled down " N.B.G." 
and came in, " perched " (with all my bombs 
on, of course), and made a perfect dream of a 
landing. 

Altogether I had really enjoyed myself, and 
would much rather do night bombing than 
day bombing. The only thing that annoyed 
me was that I couldn't find my target, 'cos 
the bombs would have looked so pretty 
exploding in the darkness. I didn't get up 
until about twelve o'clock this morning, 
and I am playing tennis at 5.15, so it has 
its advantages. 

A little red spider has just landed on me 
and buzzed off again ; that's lucky, ain't it ? 



7* 



102 STORM AFTER CALM 

Have just had a forced landing. M. was up 
Gesticula- with me, and I yelled to him to 
tion in work the throttle from his compart- 
Mid-Air m ent. He smiled benignly on me, 
not understanding or taking much heed. 
Finally I stood up, waved my arms at him, 
and shouted. He turned round, and, thinking 
that I had a mad fit on, put his thumb to 
his nose and extended his ringers. Finally, 
realising what I wanted, he tried the throttle, 
but did not succeed in working it, and in his 
turn waved his arms. We must have been 
a comical sight up there, wildly waving our 
arms at each other. As we couldn't use the 
engine and were descending, I warned M. that 
we were going to have a forced landing. He 
tumbled to that all right and removed the 
gun from behind his head and put it on the 
front mounting, just in case — er — we met a 
hedge ! We reached the aerodrome all right 
a couple of thousand feet up, and spiralled 
down. Just as I was coming in to land, 
another machine cut in ahead of me, but as 
I had no engine I couldn't " wai-at " (like 
Peg), but just perched behind him and dodged 
him. So all ended well, for I made a perfect 
landing. 



Have just been up with E. We spotted a 



A RAINSTORM 103 

storm coming up and ran for home. I came 
down to land, and found myself going too 
fast, so had to go round again. Great loss 
of dignity ! I came in again, this time right 
at the end of the aerodrome, and closed the 
throttle, but the blessed machine went on 
flying, and I switched off just in time to 
prevent running out of the aerodrome. The 
throttle had become incorrectly set and the 
engine continued to run at half speed, although 
the throttle was entirely closed. We just got 
in before the rain came down. 



I was up 8,000 feet this morning, but the 
whole sky was clouded over and one could not 
see the ground. Flying just above the clouds 
it was gorgeous ; one felt like leaning out 
and grasping a handful of snow and making 
snowballs, the clouds were so fluffy and 
white. I had a splendid game of tennis 
yesterday, and was in topping form. Light- 
ning services. Swish ! 



To-day has been " some " day. It started 
raining in the early hours and is still going 
strong. We are going to have floats fitted to 
the machines so as to take off the lakes ! 



104 STORM AFTER CALM 

Inasmuch as I was out all yesterday after- 

A Firework n °° n tTym Z t0 gGt my hair ° Ut ' * 
Display was unaD le t° write to you. Sorry. 

I was up at 2.45 a.m., and of course 

it was pitch dark. I left the ground shortly 

afterwards by flares, and had hardly got up 

a thousand feet when my engine began to 

misfire, go M chug-chug,'' and lose its revs. 

I signalled that I was descending, and came 

down, trying not to come in too low, as I 

was afraid my engine might not pick up. 

Result : I came in too high (not having had 

time to get used to the dark), and had to 

open up my engine and crawl round again 

at a couple of hundred feet. Again I essayed 

to land, but failed, and by this time I was 

absolutely furious with myself. I gave a 

glance at the rev. counter, and saw that 

the engine had found its revs, again and 

appeared to be running smoothly ; so, feeling 

that fate had willed me to stay up, I sent down 

" Engine O.K. now," and went off to the 

lines. Just after I left the aerodrome, clouds 

came up, and the CO. would not let the next 

pilot go. I found my way quite well (in a 

blue funk, though, lest my engine should let 

me down), crossed the lines, picked up the 

road I was to follow, and finally reached the 

place I was to bomb. Here I ran into clouds 

and had to come down to between 1,000 and 



THE WRONG AERODROME 105 

2,000 feet. I dropped my bombs all right, 
and saw them explode — as good as a Brock's 
firework display. Moreover, I heard the 
bangs from them, and felt the machine 
bumped by the rush of air caused by the 
explosions. Flying back by compass, I soon 
picked out some flares which I headed for. 
Realising that I was over the wrong aerodrome, 
I looked round, spotted ours, got there, did a 
good landing, reported, and went to bed again. 



My Flight-Commander has gone home after 
being out nearly eleven months. We are all 
sorry to lose him. I am sure there is no 
better Flight-Commander in all France. 



I have just come down from a long and 
rather boring job with E., which took us from 
1.30 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the upper regions. I 
had trouble with my engine yesterday, and 
had a forced landing, managing to get into 
the aerodrome and land in a cross wind. I 
had a repetition of the stunt to-day when 
testing it. We have now solved the trouble — 
a semi-choked petrol pipe. I am booked for 
tennis shortly, so will write more another 
time. 



106 STORM AFTER CALM 

Well, I have a little news for you this time. 
To let you down lightly, I will first 

Grin 6 te ^ y° u t ^ iat * am navm £ several 
new walking-sticks made, and with 
your usual Sherlock Holmes intelligence you 
will deduce, quite accurately, that I have 
carefully and conscientiously reduced a B.E. 
2C. to its molecular constituents — in other 
words, " crashed it." 

Now don't worry, as I am perfectly all 
right and thoroughly enjoying life. 

To sum up my work for the last twenty-four 
hours, I have had three forced landings, four 
hours'-odd flying, and one night flight, and 
a crash — not bad, eh ? 

The three forced landings within that short 
space of time constitute almost a record. It 
was with my own machine, and each time 
some trouble with the engine broke out when 
I had got up 500 feet. Each time that we 
thought that we had discovered the trouble 
and I took her up again, she cut out just the 
same. By great good luck I managed to get 
back into the aerodrome. On one occasion 
I had bombs on too 1 Now the machine is 
being practically pulled to pieces and altered 
by almost raving mechanics. 

I had, as I wrote you yesterday, a three 
and a half hours' non-stop flight, and later was 
down for night bombing. I was all on my 



IN DIFFICULTIES 107 

own, and several people said they thought it 
was too misty. However, the CO. asked 
me if I would like to try, and I said I was 
quite willing, and got ready. 

I went up all right, though from the time 
I passed the last flare I saw absolutely 
nothing. There was a horrible ground mist, 
worse than it looked from the ground, and 
with no moon everything was black as ink. 
I could not tell whether I was flying upside 
down or anyway, and the machine was an 
old one and not very stable. I looked round 
at the flares and found I was flying all on 
the skew, left wing down, and I put that 
right ; but not being able to see even a white 
road directly below me, I knew it was hopeless 
trying to leave the vicinity of the 'drome, 
and signalled that I was coming down. So 
down I came. 

I had been told to land down wind, owing 
to trees being at the other end of the 'drome. 
Well, there wasn't much wind, but what little 
there was I had pushing me on instead of 
holding me back. Likewise I lit a flare at 
the end of my wing, and although that enabled 
me to see the ground directly below me, I 
couldn't tell my height. I expected to touch 
ground by the first flare, but owing to these 
things and the fact that I was flying a strange 
machine the engine of which " ticked over " 



io8 STORM AFTER CALM 

rather fast, I did not touch ground at the first 
flare — but at the last. The landing was all 
right, but I plunged merrily on into the pitch 
darkness until I came to a nice new road and 
a ditch which pulled up y e machine with a 
" crunch " 1 It at once began to take up 
peculiar attitudes, similar to those of a stage 
contortionist, and endeavoured to mix up its 
tail and rudder with the propeller. At any 
rate, this is how the machine looked a second 
afterwards : 




The flare on the wing tip was still burning, 
and I had hardly time to get over my surprise 
at the bombs not bursting, when it occurred 
to me that there might be a lot of petrol 
knocking about. " This is no place for me, 
m Y boy," I thought, and undid my safety 
belt double quick and slid down one of the 
wings to the ground. 

Meanwhile some dozens of breathless 
mechanics and officers arrived at the double, 



JOLLY LUCKY 109 

and made kind inquiries as to my health, I 
am absolutely certain they were infinitely 
more scared than I was, and they all seemed 
relieved when I told them I was all right. I 
then lit a cigarette (as being the correct thing 
to do), observing with satisfaction that my 
hand was quite steady, and walked up to the 
CO. and apologised. " Oh, that's all right, as 
long as you are all right : J — , just ring up 
the Wing, and tell them our machine has 
landed." 

Everybody was bucked that I got out all 
right. One of our pilots said he didn't know 
how I managed to land at all, and thinks I 
was jolly lucky. 

At any rate, it is experience and it didn't 
hurt me in the least, so I have nothing to 
grumble about. By the way, I don't expect 
to get my next leave much before Christmas at 
any rate, as there is none going here just now. 



I had a good game of tennis yesterday, and 
took up my machine to test it again. This 
time the engine ran perfectly and I did some 
splendid stunts coming down. When I had 
landed, an officer who was visiting the 
aerodrome came up and thanked me for my 
" beautiful exhibition." I felt inclined to 
pass the hat round. I have just come down 



no STORM AFTER CALM 

now, and have been taking photos. Archie was 
scarce owing to clouds, but the clouds made it 
harder for me to photo. Made a toppinglanding. 

• • • • 

Just come down from a shoot. G. was up with 
me, but I did the shoot. We got some pretty- 
good Archie at us, and as the artillery did not 
shoot well, I dropped a couple of bombs on the 
target. I must get tea, and then to tennis. 

• • • • 

I have not much news to-day, except that 
I have had a splendid game of tennis, and a 
rather pleasant bombing raid. We went a 
long way over, past a Hun aerodrome, and 
got hardly any Archie at all, owing to the 
clouds. I got a beautiful shot with one of 
my bombs, on a railway station— my ob- 
jective. On the way back I did a spiral on 
the other side of the Hun lines, and one of 
our chaps, thinking I was a Hun going down, 
fired a drum of ammunition at me. I told 
him he must be a rotten shot, and had better 
have some practice on the range with me. 
Altogether it was quite a jolly flight. 

• • • • 

I was testing my machine round the 'drome 
stalling *kis morning when it occurred to me 
to indulge in a few stunts. I ob- 
tained the sanction of my passenger, and we 
proceeded to do vertical banks, stalls, and tail 



STALLING 



in 



slides, much to the enjoyment of a group of 
officers who (I heard afterwards) were watch- 
ing. I found it most enjoyable. Perhaps 3^ou 
don't know what " stalling " is. You are 
flying level so : 




then you pull the nose of the machine up so 




till at last it becomes perpendicular, so 




112 



STORM AFTER CALM 



when of course it gradually slows down and 
stops dead in the air, sticks there a moment, 
and then falls so : 




and plunges on until it regains sufficient speed 
to bring it under control again and level. 
The feeling after the machine has stuck at 



ADVENTURE AND PLEASURE 113 

the top, and then falls down, is the " left your 
stummick up above — tube-lift feeling " — only 
more so. 



E. and I have been on a cross-country flight. 
The exhaust pipe blew off, and as the hot 
exhaust then became directed on the petrol 
tank, we decided to land, and came down in 
a nice little field, pulling up six inches from 
a ploughed field, and conveniently near a 
hospital. However, we didn't need the hospi- 
tal, and soon got the machine to rights, but are 
stuck here owing to rain. We are, however, 
near a town, and are going to a " flicker 
show " to-night to see Charlie Chaplin. We 
have " fallen " among friends here, for there 
was an officers ' mess within a hundred yards 
of where we landed, and we are being splendidly 
treated. Altogether an ideal place for a forced 
landing. 

• • • • 

My adventures of the past two days remind 
me of the great motor-cycle ride R. and I had 
from Devon to London. Let me see — it was 
the day before yesterday, I think, that I last 
wrote you, and told you about our forced 
landing. Well, E. and I and two others went 
to the cinema and saw " Charlie " in the 
evening, and stopped the night in an hotel. 
8 



H4 STORM AFTER CALM 

The next day we made a few purchases, and 
when the rain stopped I went up alone from 
the field to dry the machine and examine the 
weather. I had hardly left the ground before 
I went slap into the clouds at 50 feet. I 
turned quickly and crawled back just above 
the ground, missing a factory chimney by a 
few yards, and plunged down again into a 
bigger field close by the other, pulling up a 
couple of yards from a hole in the ground. 
Later in the day when it cleared up we started 
again, and we were only a few miles away when 
the blessed exhaust pipe popped off. The 
petrol tank started getting hot again, so we 
had to come down, and it took us an awful 
time to find a decent field. They were all 
humps and bunkers and hazards, where, if we 
had landed, we should have gone head over 
heels. At last I found a good place, and 
perched, pulling up with the wing tip touching 
a bundle of hay. We stopped a car, and E. 
went on it to the aerodrome for help. How- 
ever, I got a spare bolt from the car, and while 
they were gone repaired the damage myself, 
got two farm labourers to hold the machine 
while I swung the propeller, and started the 
engine myself. Then I clambered into the 
machine and went off alone, getting to the 
aerodrome just as my helpers were leaving. 



SHELLS THAT PASS 115 

The weather is pretty dud. You remember 
the two games of Patience I used to play — 
the Four Aces and the Idle Year. They have 
caught on here tremendously ; every one from 
Flight Commanders down is playing them. 
I am thinking of sending to Cox's for my pass- 
book. Four of us played pitch and toss 
yesterday with pennies for two hours, and I 
lost sevenpence. The gambling fever has 
gripped. 

I took up a Scotch sergeant a couple of days 
ago. He was a perfect " scream." " Can you 
tell me where ahm tae pit ma feet, an' where 
ahm no tae pit them." He quite enjoyed the 
flight, though, and looked round once with a 
huge grin, and said " Bon I " By the way, I 
saw a very curious sight the other day, and a 
very rare one. I saw two of our shells pass in 
the air while I was flying. They were not near 
me, but I just got an impression of them as 
they went down. You can, I believe, see them 
go if you are standing behind the guns, but P. 
is the only one in our Flight who has seen 
them from the air. 

I think the idea of dividing R.F.C. Squadrons 
up by public schools is splendid, but, alas ! 
impossible. 



n6 STORM AFTER CALM 

Yesterday G. and I were doing a big shoot 
some four miles or so over the lines, 

f? m* anc * as ** was a ^ m i st y we went up 
to about 6,000 feet and sat right over 
our target for about a quarter of an hour. 
There was a Hun patrol of three machines 
buzzing around that neighbourhood, and when 
they got within a few hundred yards, I thought 
it was about time to draw G.'s attention to the 
matter. He sat up with a jerk, gave a quick 
glance round, never noticed 'em, and glued 
himself on his target again. " All right," I said 
to myself, " you'll wake up with a jump in a 
minute." To my surprise two of the Huns took 
no notice of us and went on, while the third 
circled about very diffidently watching us. Once 
he passed right over about 200 feet above us, and 
at that moment G. looked up. You could see 
the black iron crosses painted on a background 
of silver on the wings, and at that G. moved, 
and damn quickly too. I was busy watching 
the Hun, and didn't feel a bit excited or 
nervous. I watched and waited, and then 
suddenly the Hun stuffed his nose down and 
swooped behind us, and we heard his machine 
gun pop-popping away like mad. I waited 
till he was about a hundred yards away, and 
then did a vertically banked " about turn " and 
went slap for him, and let him have about 
forty rounds rapid at about seventy yards 



STILL RUNNING 117 

range. G. had his gun ready to fire, when the 
Hun turned and made for home. We chased 
him a short way just for moral effect, and then 
went back to our target and on with our job. 
We were awfully surprised when he didn't 
come back. I suppose we scared him or some- 
thing. This little chat took place about 
7,000 feet up, and five miles on their side of 
the lines. Was up 'smorning ; jolly cold. 
The guns are going like Rachmaninoff's 
Prelude. 



Before I stop I want to say this : If my 
adventures and amusements are going to 
cause you loss of sleep when they are over, 
you ain't a-goin' to hear no more. Please 
don't let them disturb you. I have generally 
forgotten all about them by the time your 
return letter arrives. 



[end] 



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